Shloka 84
Śiva-nāmānukīrtana-prastāvaḥ
Prologue to the praise of Śiva and the Upamanyu testimony
कुशद्वीपं च स ददौ राज्येन भगवानज: । तथा शतमुखो नाम धात्रा सृष्टो महासुर:
kuśadvīpaṃ ca sa dadau rājyena bhagavān ajaḥ | tathā śatamukho nāma dhātrā sṛṣṭo mahāsuraḥ ||
Vāsudeva said: “That blessed Unborn Lord, Ajā, granted him Kuśadvīpa together with sovereignty. Likewise, the great asura named Śatamukha was created by Dhātṛ.”
वासुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights divine ordination in two domains: legitimate sovereignty is portrayed as a granted trust (rājya bestowed by the Lord), and even formidable adversarial forces (a mahāsura) arise within a cosmic order through the Creator’s act—suggesting that power and opposition both operate under a higher नियति (ordained order).
Vāsudeva continues a mythic-cosmological account: a figure receives Kuśadvīpa along with kingship from the ‘Unborn’ Lord, and the Creator Dhātṛ brings forth a powerful asura named Śatamukha, indicating the establishment of realms and beings within the unfolding of creation.